Chapter 166: Breaking Out

Chapter 166: Breaking Out



In an instant, Rayne had reached the bottom deck of the Sunken Ship, the very place where he had plunged his Glowing Greatsword. He could see a small section of the gleaming sword's tip protruding through the thick hull, appearing on his right side.

However, the most important task at hand, aside from retrieving his greatsword, was to execute his plan!

This particular deck was also where the gunpowder barrels of the Sunken Ship were stored.

Rayne's gaze fell upon a small cabin directly ahead, where numerous large wooden barrels were neatly stacked on iron racks, slightly elevated to prevent moisture.

Rayne first exerted himself to pull out the greatsword, and then switched his weapon from the Pig-headed Hammer to the Glowing Greatsword.

At this moment, a group of Bloodsail Pirates, led by the burly first mate with a wide face and the bearded master-at-arms, surrounded him from all sides.

Rayne assessed his physical exhaustion from the previous burst of power and silently recited the mantra of attribute points.

Following his pre-planned attribute point allocation, as the remaining points decreased from 3 to 2 and his Willpower increased from 23 to 24, he instantly felt a surge of heat coursing through his body, rapidly spreading from his heart to his limbs. In an instant, Rayne restored his stamina to its peak condition!

When it came to endurance, Rayne, with his ability to recover through attribute points, was never afraid of anyone!

The Bloodsail Pirates, witnessing Rayne's calm demeanor as he held the greatsword, were momentarily intimidated by his aura, hesitating to approach. This infuriated several pirate leaders who had not witnessed Rayne's might before.

"Attack! Kill him!" the pirate leaders roared, taking the lead in launching their assault.

As the pirates howled, they once again surrounded Rayne.

Rayne's body expanded, his neck swelling as if his chest held a boiling pot of water, and his gaping mouth became the blaring steam whistle, emitting a massive surge of heat.

"ROAR!!!"

A roar louder than all of them combined echoed through the bottom deck.

"Roar Strike!"

The Bloodsail Pirates paled, silently thinking, "This is bad!" But it was too late to retreat.

The most challenging aspect of this wide-ranging sonic attack was that there was no escape unless one could outrun the speed of sound.

Additionally, the enclosed space of the ship's cabin amplified the sound waves, further increasing their lethality.

The next moment, a deafening boom exploded in the ears of the pirates.

Dozens of Bloodsail Pirates had their facial skin stretched, some light reading, as the sound waves repeatedly stretched, shook, and deformed their faces, causing their eyes to roll back, revealing the whites, and leaving their minds blank.

"AAAAHHHH!!!" they screamed.

After the deafening boom, for several seconds, their ears and minds rang with a persistent buzzing sound, unable to recover.

Unlike before, Rayne did not simultaneously unleash the Whirlwind Slash. Instead, he seized this opportunity to cast the magic spell, Blazing Light.

Above Rayne's left palm, an intensely piercing flame suddenly ignited, illuminating the previously dim environment as bright as day for a brief moment.

The Bloodsail Pirates suffered further as their eardrums tore, heads throbbing in pain, and just as they started to recover, they were nearly blinded by the intense light, seeing nothing but a blinding white expanse.

This abrupt transition from darkness to blinding light was unbearable.

"AAAAHHHH!!!"

The screams that had momentarily subsided rose again.

After a few seconds, when the pirates could barely see again, they noticed the intense light moving towards a pile of cylindrical objects at the bottom of the cabin.

The first mate and the master-at-arms, who had regained their vision first, were horrified to see Rayne had lit the fuse of a gunpowder barrel.

"Sizzle!"

The sound of the burning fuse was like a death knell.

Judging by the length of the fuse, the barrel would likely explode in three seconds.

Retreat!

Quickly! Faster!

The first mate and the master-at-arms immediately abandoned their posts and rushed to the upper deck, disregarding everything else.

They were well aware that if those gunpowder barrels exploded, not only would they perish, but the Sunken Ship might also be torn in half. The thought of such a scenario sent shivers down their spines.

"Run!"

The ordinary pirates, realizing the danger, pushed past the formidable enemy blocking their path, to extinguish the fuse.

Their only option now was to flee.

As long as they could reach the decks at either end, they might survive the explosion.

"BOOM!!!"

Just as the Bloodsail Pirates were in disarray, rushing like headless flies towards the ladder leading to the upper deck, Rayne's body expanded again, and the two-meter-tall muscle beast reappeared. He swiftly switched weapons and, with a single strike, punched a hole through the thirty-centimeter-thick oak hull.

Then, Rayne forcefully kicked off with his feet, leaping through the hole and soaring over ten meters to the nearest small boat.

Previously, he had broken into the ship, and now, he was breaking out.

Two seconds later, as Rayne was mid-air, he caught a glimpse of a familiar, beautiful female face peering out from the hole in the captain's cabin at the stern of the Sunken Ship.

Rayne's pupils constricted, his expression changing as a thought flashed through his mind, 'How is she there?' But before he could ponder the reason, Rayne shouted, "Run! The ship's going to explode!"

As he shouted, Rayne vigorously waved his arms twice.

It turned out that Navy Lieutenant Commander Marika, following the male Navy officer, had just entered the captain's cabin of the Sunken Ship through the hole Rayne had hammered.

As soon as they entered the captain's cabin, they were shocked to see the captain and diviner of the Sunken Ship, Mara Nasir, lying on the ground.

They stared in disbelief at this scene, momentarily unable to comprehend what kind of attack could cause such a result—the back of the head hollowed out, but the front face still intact.

A two-handed hammer?

One blow would have smashed the face!

A two-handed greatsword?

Shouldn't it have been a beheading or splitting in half?

While Marika was shocked, she picked up a quill and quickly recorded, "Zhu participated in the enlistment examination, Rayne, killed the captain and diviner of the Bloodsail Pirates' Sunken Ship."

But before she could finish writing, suddenly, they felt the ship's body shake violently, as if a large hole had been blown out somewhere.

So, without hesitation, they peered out and saw Rayne fleeing from the bottom of the cabin, shouting, "The ship's going to explode!"

The crowd's faces changed, and although they couldn't understand how the ship was going to explode, they didn't dare to stay any longer.

This newly-enlisted knight, who had participated in the enlistment examination, had already shocked them too much. The young man was most likely telling the truth!

They had to run first!

So, the crowd quickly scrambled out of the hole in the captain's cabin and leaped onto nearby small boats, each person resembling a large bird on the sea.

One second.

Compared to the Bloodsail Pirates crammed in the narrow ship cabins and wooden staircases, trampling over each other, the Imperial Navy officers were indeed fortunate. In the same amount of time, they had managed to run out ten to twenty meters.

Faced with the threat of death, the pirates scrambled over each other to get out. Finally, as the explosion arrived, most of the pirates managed to step onto the ship's staircases.

"Boom!!!"

The explosion reverberated throughout Merit Island, startling everyone, including Rayne. They were hit by the shockwave from behind, nearly stumbling, and then a splash of water over ten meters tall drenched them, leaving them soaked.

The miserable state of the crowd hinted at the fate of the Bloodsail Pirates on the Sunken Ship.

They turned back and saw the thirty-meter-long Sunken Ship, now split into two pieces, burning with raging flames, and slowly sinking.

However, as the Sunken Ship was docked at the coast, the water wasn't deep. This caused both halves of the ship to have one end protruding above the water, resembling giant reefs standing tall.

On the pier outside.

Navy Rear Admiral Silva had been about to say something.

Suddenly, a roar came from the direction of the Sunken Ship, a roar so substantial it resembled that of a giant bear.

This caused General Silva and the middle-aged nobleman Theo to pause their conversation and look towards the Sunken Ship once more.

They saw the middle bottom section of the Sunken Ship's hull suddenly explode, and a familiar figure quickly running out. It didn't seem like a retreat but more like a desperate escape.

"Huh? Is this what happens when you're overwhelmed in a siege?" This was the first thought that came to the minds of the two men.

But just as they heard Rayne shout, "The ship's going to explode!" the two high-ranking officials exchanged glances, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

"It's going to explode?"

"He blew up the Sunken Ship?"

Just as the two men were stunned, a deafening explosion reverberated throughout the pier.

They raised their hands to block the violent airflow caused by the shockwave, and even from over a hundred meters away, the powerful airflow made their clothes flutter.

"What did this young man do?"

"Didn't he say that killing the first mate on the way here would earn him an excellent evaluation?"

"What kind of operation is this, blowing up an entire ship of Bloodsail Pirates?" the two men thought.

However, as experienced people who had seen many scenes, Navy Rear Admiral Silva quickly regained his composure and said to the middle-aged nobleman, "This kid not only disrupted my previous deployment but also destroyed a three-masted warship that was about to be captured!"

"Yes, but what he did doesn't violate any enlistment examination regulations." The middle-aged nobleman, Theo, smiled helplessly.

Who would have thought that a newly-enlisted knight participating in the enlistment examination would be more ferocious in fighting pirates than the experienced Navy Assault Team?

"He's quite a troublemaker!"

"Additionally, we might have to get busy now!" Navy Rear Admiral Silva once again focused his attention on the Bloodsail.

Perhaps influenced by the Sunken Ship being blown into two pieces, the Bloodsail, including the Bloodsail Pirates' flagship, became more chaotic.

Two figures, one in front of the other, charged towards the pirate flagship, the Bloodsail.

Including the Bloodsail Pirates' flagship, the Bloodsail, and other pirate ships, the pirates, the Imperial Navy's elite forces, and the newly-enlisted knights participating in the enlistment examination were all shaken by the deafening explosion.

On the Ruler, the young knights led by the noble heir were engaged in combat with the Bloodsail Pirates wielding curved blades on the deck.

As the crowd boarded the Ruler, it became increasingly difficult to conceal their presence. After a period of stealthy attacks, the situation eventually escalated into an all-out battle.

The intense explosion from the Sunken Ship reverberated, and everyone witnessed the three-masted ship engulfed in flames, split into two. They couldn't help but marvel at the Imperial Navy's grand gesture, and their morale soared!

A similar scene unfolded on the Hooked as well.

The Bloodsail, the flagship of the Bloodsail Pirates, was naturally a formidable force, engaging in fierce combat with the Imperial Navy's assault team. This explained why Rear Admiral Silva had mentioned he would be busy for a while.

At this moment, Rayne Kalan, with a calm expression, was observing the scene ahead, seemingly admiring his "masterpiece."

In reality, he was checking the system prompts:

【Your High Temperature Field skill has improved. Experience +17】

【Your Giant Bear Sword Technique has improved. Experience +54】

【Your Tok'kar Hammer Technique has improved. Experience +377】

【Your Blazing Light skill has improved. Experience +19】

【You have engaged in a battle. Knight (Elixir) Experience +81, Wizard Apprentice (Elixir) Experience +46】

At this moment, Colonel Marika, in her navy uniform and thick-soled boots, strode over to Rayne with quick steps. Slightly annoyed, she said, "Knight Rayne, why didn't you inform us before causing such a commotion?"

"Just now, we almost..."

Rayne turned to look at the beautiful colonel, her uniform clinging to her body, accentuating her alluring figure. However, her beautiful face was filled with anger, her eyes fixed on him.

Rayne understood her feelings; after all, anyone would be furious if they had almost died at the hands of their allies.

Marika, who always valued her appearance, was drenched in seawater from the explosion of the Sunken Ship. At this moment, salty drops trickled down her long, wet hair.

This was unbearable for someone who valued cleanliness as much as she did!

"I admit, I was negligent."

"But the instructions didn't mention that knights participating in the enlistment examination needed to report their action plans in advance, did they?"

Rayne felt the need to explain.

Read the flawless version at 69shu! 6=9shu_ba

After all, if he hadn't reminded the 'allies' in time, there might have been casualties on their side, so he added, "You..."

Rayne's words caused Marika's ample chest to heave, but as she thought about it carefully, she couldn't find any fault in what Rayne had said.

Indeed, the enlistment examination regulations didn't specify that participating knights needed to report their action plans.

"Then how do you expect me to record and document your kills?" Marika shifted her tone, pointing to the Bloodsail pirates still alive, floating on the sea, and the many more corpses that had drifted away.

Rayne inwardly mocked, 'You're the record-keeper, so it's up to you to figure it out,' but he reassured her, "Major Marika, just record the captain, first mate, and master-at-arms of the Sunken Ship, and that should be sufficient."

"No way! As the record-keeper, I must record everything clearly."

When Rayne had seen the design plans for the three-masted ship earlier, he had already devised this battle plan. At that time, he carefully examined every detail, including the thickness of the ship's hull, deck, and more.

On the other hand, near the bonfire on the beach, he also found thick oak planks used by the pirates to repair their ship's hull, and he personally tested their strength.

After meeting all the necessary conditions, Rayne finally decided to execute this battle plan.

His goal was simple: to kill as many Bloodsail pirates as possible to earn a high evaluation.

After all, an excellent evaluation wasn't Rayne's goal; obtaining an invitation from the Imperial Swordsmen was!

As for why Rayne didn't choose the Bloodsail, it was because the assault team's main target was also the Bloodsail.

If points were awarded for killing lower-ranked pirates, it was clear that the Sunken Ship, with its potential for a complete sweep, was a better choice.

Additionally, the Bloodsail had a Great Knight-level expert, Bloody Hand Will, and Rayne felt it was too risky to confront him directly.

Although Rayne's current strength, including the Second-Level Wizard Apprentice, exceeded the Master Knight level, he believed there was still a gap when compared to a Great Knight.

As for the extent of the gap, he wasn't sure.

After all, he had never fought against a Great Knight-level opponent.

Lastly, there was one crucial factor: the secret envoy from the Eagle Federation, whose strength was unknown. The Imperial Navy's information didn't mention it, and the Rear Admiral didn't disclose it either.

The unknown posed the greatest uncontrollable risk.

However, if he had chosen the Sunken Ship, these issues wouldn't have existed.

Looking back, Rayne felt his decision was wise.

At this moment, Rayne suddenly remembered something.

He seemed to have forgotten to collect the loot, especially that of Captain and Diviner Mara Nasir of the Sunken Ship.

As a wizard apprentice, Mara might have other magic models or something that interested him, but Rayne wasn't too concerned about the others' loot.

Fortunately, although the Sunken Ship was split in two, it was broken in the middle.

Both ends, the stern and the bow, were currently standing at a forty-five-degree angle to the sky, not sinking into the seawater.

Rayne immediately turned and asked, "Lieutenant Commander Marika, do the spoils of the enlistment examination belong to the individual or the Empire?"

"Huh?" Marika, who was in a fit of anger, didn't expect Rayne to suddenly ask such an unrelated question.

She thought for a moment and replied, "They belong to the individual, of course. However, if it involves something related to the Empire's national security, it must be handed over."

Rayne nodded, "Thank you, Lieutenant Commander Marika. I think I should go and look for my loot. Would you like to come with me?"

"Hmm? Okay!" Marika was taken aback but quickly nodded in agreement.

As expected, 'Distraction' was a good way to divert a woman's nagging.

Rayne had often used this technique on his mother, Emma.

Now it seemed like a 'universal skill'.

The Captain's Cabin of the Sunken Ship.

Although it was Marika's second time seeing the Diviner's corpse, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Knight Rayne, how did you manage to do this to him?"

As she spoke, Marika pointed at the man's hollowed-out skull.

"It's just a secret technique. By the way, I received an excellent evaluation for this enlistment examination. Shouldn't there be any issues?" Rayne didn't want to reveal more about his methods and used the 'Distraction' technique again.

"Of course, in my opinion, you deserve an even higher level of evaluation. However, unfortunately, the highest evaluation for the enlistment examination is excellent," Lieutenant Commander Marika said with a slight smile.

The stern deck of the Bloodsail.

Naval Rear Admiral Silva, his face ashen, gazed at a rapidly departing ripple several hundred meters away. He knew that beneath the surface was a new device developed by the Eagle Federation, capable of underwater navigation for a short period.

It seemed that his ships stationed in the open sea couldn't stop them.

This surprise raid had almost succeeded, what a pity!

However, as he looked at the tall and burly 'Bloody Hand Will' lying limp beside him, Admiral Silva's expression finally improved.

At least, he should be able to extract some useful information from him.

"Report, General: We found a batch of new-style matchlock guns. Based on the quality and craftsmanship, they should be from the Eagle Federation," said a messenger who had come to report.

Admiral Silva nodded without saying a word.

At this moment, the battle on Merit Island was gradually coming to an end.

The tally was being conducted with overtime work.

Especially on the Sunken Ship side, Lieutenant Commander Marika had to ask her colleagues for help to salvage the floating corpses and the half-dead Bloodsail pirates.

The male naval officer was directing the assault team that was originally going to attack the Sunken Ship, cleaning up the sea surface.

Rayne was quite lucky. The first mate with a fleshy face and the master-at-arms with a bushy beard were both salvaged.

Their strong bodies, at the senior knight level, had allowed them to survive after avoiding the explosion's epicenter.

However, seriously injured, they couldn't escape the Imperial Navy's search and were captured on the spot.

According to the tally rules of the enlistment examination, it had to be either witnessed by the recorder or accompanied by distinctive objects or corpses.

Now, the 'Three Heads of the Sunken Ship' were all found and recorded under Rayne's kill list.

One hour later.

The newly appointed knights who participated in the enlistment examination gathered again and boarded the returning naval warship.

Unlike the previous voyage, this warship was a large four-masted ship of the Imperial Navy.

In the cabin, some people couldn't hide their joy, while others hung their heads in disappointment.

"I killed six Bloodsail pirate leaders and received a good evaluation. It should be fine!"

"Alas! I only killed eleven ordinary pirates. I'm afraid I'm in trouble this time!" said a young man, unable to hide his disappointment.

"Who told you to choose the 'Small Fortress'? Although it's safe, there are far fewer pirates inside than on the ship, and you sent so many people!" said a slightly older young man next to him with a hint of disdain.

Many people are like this, wanting both safety and a big harvest.

He went to the Hooked, where he eliminated seven Bloodsail pirate leaders and eight ordinary pirates, securing a good evaluation!

"Have you heard? The red-haired maiden Evelyn killed the master-at-arms of the Bloodsail and several pirate leaders."

"That fierce? She must have gotten an excellent evaluation! Wow, she'll directly be conferred a baron's title. I'm so envious!"

"Yes! Many knights have served the Empire for decades, and in the end, they only get a baron's title," said a young man next to him, looking at the red-haired maiden with envy.

However, what puzzled him was that the beautiful eyes of the red-haired maiden, Evelyn, kept glancing at a black-haired youth beside her.

Thanks to the 100-coin reward from the new user, Cai Niao Wu Fan Fei!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end